'Firefly,' Marvel movies top Internet April Fool's hoaxes

Tuesday

Apr 1, 2014 at 7:32 PM

April Fool's Day started early this year: A good 15 minutes or so before midnight, in fact. That's when a story suddenly exploded across Facebook: Netflix was reviving the beloved cult sci-fi TV show "Firefly," in much the same manner that it did the cult-favorite comedy "Arrested Development."

It took mere moments for many to figure out what was happening, and the tears and recriminations were fierce.

That's the sort of April Fool's prank that works well in the Internet age: the kind that pretends to give the readers something they want very much, in the most plausible way possible. After all, fans of the show have been clamoring nonstop to bring it back, even as most of the cast has moved on to shows that are, on the whole, far more successful, most notably Nathan Fillion, who now stars on "Castle," and Morena Baccarin, who is on "Homeland." Never mind showrunner Tim Minear, who is a producer on "American Horror Story" now, and show creator Joss Whedon, who's overseeing that "Avengers" movie franchise for Disney. The hoax waved these problems away by saying they were working around everybody's schedule. Heh. As if it's that easy.

Other April Fool's Day Internet hoaxes prey on the readers' fears, such as the one going around that said that Fox had agreed to sell back the rights to "X-Men" and "Fantastic Four" to Disney (which owns creators Marvel Comics) for $1.8 billion dollars. Which sounds like a lot of money, until you realize that "Avengers" and "Iron Man 3" each made that all on their own. Neither "X-Men" or "Fantastic Four" are as profitable — I don't have numbers handy — but a billion dollars isn't as big a number as it sounds these days.

This was an interesting prank, as it played fans' disdain for Disney buying the rights to everything — Marvel, "Star Wars," The Muppets — with their desire to have all the Marvel characters back in one basket.

Some hoaxes are just mean-spirited, such as the one that alleged that Arnold Schwarzenegger had died in a snowboarding accident. But others sucker you through your desire to wish others well. On the "Best American Poetry" website, editor David Lehman pulled a few legs with the news that he, actor James Franco and "Mad Men" star Elizabeth Moss would be judges on a televised "America's Next Top Poet." In a similar stunt, San Francisco area poet Sonya Renee — who's performed in Worcester a couple of times — suckered a few when she announced that she'd be hosting "The Sonya Renee Show" for CBS.

For the record, I would totally watch that. But the point is, sometimes people wanting to wish someone well is the best way to hoodwink them. A few years ago, I posted a hoax on my personal blog, talking about my awesome new book deal…which got more and more ridiculous as the post went on, culminating with the possibility of my recording a rap album. Which, trust me, no one wants to see.

People were still congratulating me more than a year later. Which, I suppose, means you should be careful what tricks you play: Informing someone they've been fooled on April 2 is fun. A year later is a a bit more awkward. (Victor D. Infante)

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.